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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29290308">Reckless</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/arcticfrostdoesthings/pseuds/arcticfrostdoesthings'>arcticfrostdoesthings</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Sanders Sides (Web Series)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Hurt/Comfort</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 06:00:14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,397</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29290308</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/arcticfrostdoesthings/pseuds/arcticfrostdoesthings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After the events of POF, Roman has been spending more and more time alone in the Imagination. Virgil goes looking for him.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Anxiety | Virgil Sanders &amp; Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>51</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Reckless</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>As anxiety, Virgil’s gotten used to things not going as expected.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>This, however, was getting ridiculous.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It all started when Virgil noticed that Roman had been in the Imagination for a long time. This wasn’t particularly unusual- Roman was known to spend days in the Imagination at once- but after… recent events, Virgil was being extra cautious. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Roman? You in there?” Virgil called as he passed Roman’s room on his way downstairs. When he didn’t get a response, he knocked again. “Ro?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Still no response.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil suddenly got the feeling that something was very, </span>
  <em>
    <span>very</span>
  </em>
  <span> wrong.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He threw the door open. Roman’s room was messy and disorganized, like usual, but it only served to feed into Virgil’s anxiety. The door to the Imagination was closed, though Virgil could hear muffled sounds coming from it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He gulped. He wasn’t sure if Roman would be angry that Virgil entered his room without permission, but he decided to take the risk.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman had been growing more and more distant ever since… whatever had happened with Patton and Deceit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>If Virgil was being honest, he was scared- scared for Roman, scared for Thomas, scared of the change that he knew was coming, whether he liked it or not.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil shook his head, annoyed that he got distracted so easily. He had come in here for a reason.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He made his way over to the door to the Imagination and took a deep breath. Distantly, he could hear the sounds of battle. He turned the knob and braced himself for what he would find on the other side.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The first thing Virgil noticed when he stepped into the Imagination was that he had stumbled into some sort of forest. It wasn’t dark or menacing, like any forest you would find on Remus’s side of the mindscape- if anything, it looked like something straight out of a Disney movie.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The second thing he noticed was the scent of smoke. Something was burning.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That definitely wasn’t a good sign. He quickened his pace.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil was almost grateful for the roars and the sound of clanging swords; he would have been hopelessly lost otherwise. The smoke grew thicker as he got closer, and he had to cover his mouth with his sleeve to avoid inhaling too much of it. He found himself wondering yet again what Roman had gotten himself into this time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eventually, he made it to what looked like the edge of the forest. The smoke had thinned out enough for him to breathe without hurting his lungs, but the haze that blurred his vision was really starting to get on his nerves.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sight that greeted Virgil once his eyes adjusted wasn’t exactly out of the ordinary for the Imagination- bright red dragon setting fire to anything that burned, Roman armed with only a sword, trying his best to drive it away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But something was wrong with the image. The dragon stood triumphantly over a burnt patch of forest while Roman, looking beat and battered, struggled to stand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Roman!” Virgil shouted without thinking.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman looked over his shoulder at him. The dragon, taking advantage of the distraction, roared and whipped its tail around, hitting Roman. He fell to the ground with a </span>
  <em>
    <span>thump</span>
  </em>
  <span>. He didn’t get back up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil’s eyes went wide in horror. He silently cursed himself as he ran to Roman’s side. The dragon growled in confusion, but Virgil couldn’t count on it being confused for long.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shit, Roman I’m so sorry,” Virgil said as he reached the prince. His hands hovered over him, and for the first time he realized he didn’t have a plan.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman groaned and looked up at him. “What are you doing here?” he asked weakly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Looking for you!” he replied. “You-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman’s eyes suddenly widened and he surged up, tackling Virgil to the side. The dragon's talon stomped the space they had been in a few moments ago.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have to go,” Roman wheezed as he struggled to sit up. He gave up and flopped to the ground again. “I don’t know why you came here, but I can take care of the dragon myself.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Like hell you can!” Virgil said. He reached for the sword Roman had dropped and grasped the hilt. He whirled around in time to see the dragon studying him with menacing yellow eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil glanced back at Roman, who was struggling to stay conscious. He looked up at the dragon, eyes narrowed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You want him?” Virgil yelled. “You’ll have to go through me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The dragon roared and raised a talon. Virgil’s eyes widened. In a split second decision, he thrust the sword forward, striking the dragon’s other leg. It stumbled, making a small noise of surprise. Virgil sidestepped and started to climb the dragon’s leg, using its scales as footholds.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil managed to climb to the dragon’s head without falling to his death. He glanced down and immediately regretted his decision. He would most certainly not survive the fall, that was for sure.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He tried stabbing the dragon’s neck, but he couldn’t make a dent. His job was also made infinitely harder with it trying its hardest to throw him off. He held on to its horn with one arm while the other desperately searched for a weak spot. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He glanced down at the dragon’s eye and got the beginning of a very risky idea. He slid further down the dragon’s back, forcing it to twist its neck around to look at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil tightened his grip on the sword and stepped forward, thrusting it at the dragon’s face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The dragon tried to jerk away, but it was too late. The sword was already buried hilt deep in its eye, which had gone dark. Virgil slid down the dragon’s back to the ground, a split second before it collapsed and vanished into a shower of sparkles. The sword remained, the only evidence the battle had happened.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As Virgil made his way over to Roman, the weight of what he just accomplished hit him. He had </span>
  <em>
    <span>slain</span>
  </em>
  <span> a </span>
  <em>
    <span>dragon</span>
  </em>
  <span>. He curled his hands into fists to stop them from shaking, thought it felt like his whole body was vibrating from adrenaline.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman was staring at him as he approached. “That was </span>
  <em>
    <span>awesome,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> he breathed, slowly smiling as Virgil finally let himself grin. “I didn’t know you fought dragons in your free time.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil helped Roman up, wrapping an arm around his waist. He made sure Roman could walk comfortably before replying. “Oh, it’s just a side hobby, nothing much.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman tried to laugh, but only succeeded in making himself cough. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil frowned. “How long have you been here?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman furrowed his brows as he thought. “Only a few hours, if I recall correctly. It can’t have been </span>
  <em>
    <span>too</span>
  </em>
  <span> long, surely.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They had reached the door that led back to Roman’s room. Virgil shrugged as well as he could with Roman’s arm around his shoulders and turned the knob. “Not any longer than usual.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman didn’t reply.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They entered Roman’s room. Usually, it would have taken Virgil’s breath away, but after the Imagination, it seemed almost normal.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You should rest for a bit,” Virgil said as Roman limped over to his bed. “I think I remember something Remus once told me about how sleep heals all wounds from the Imagination?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman flinched at the mention of his brother, and Virgil immediately regretted bringing him up. Roman didn’t mention it, instead saying, “Now? I’m sure Patton is wondering where I am.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He said it like it was a death sentence. Virgil found himself wondering yet again what exactly happened that night.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Patton</span>
  </em>
  <span> can wait,” Virgil said, pushing Roman’s shoulder, forcing him to lay down in his bed. “You need to heal. Now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman finally relented, allowing Virgil to pull a blanket over him and turn off the lights. Virgil moved to leave, but stopped right in front of the door.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Roman?” he said quietly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman turned to look at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… may not have all the details on what happened on the wedding night, but… you know you can talk to me anytime, right?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman was silent for a moment. “Yes,” he said slowly. “Yeah, I do. Thank you, Virgil. Truly.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil noted how Roman finally sounded sincere, after weeks of dodging questions and spending most of his time away from the other sides.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Night, Roman,” Virgil said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good night, Virgil.”</span>
</p>
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